INSIDE - Camp Ramah

VOICES OF THE RAMAH C AMPS & ISRAEL PROGRAMS
ISSUE THREE
SPRING 2007
INSIDE
National Ramah
Commission
winter programs
“Ramah World
Outreach”
Solidarity with Israel
Special needs
programs
Nyack hanichim prepare for the climbing wall.
Tzeirim sailors learn boating skills on Skeleton Lake in Canada.
Ramah Israel
programs
Programming
innovations
Impact on
mishlachat
Camp anniversaries
and reunions
Camper reflections
Outdoor adventure
First-time California campers already feel the ruach.
All gather on the kikar for Kabbalat Shabbat at Wisconsin.
Hebrew and
tefillah initiatives
Yom Sport
highlights
Performing arts
Poconos campers and staff enjoy water aerobics.
Israel Seminar bikers prepare for a Negev desert adventure.
Campers share friendship and smiles at Ramah Darom.
The rainbow waterslide provides hours of fun for Berkshires campers.
National Ramah Commission, Inc.
of The Jewish Theological Seminary
3080 Broadway, New York, NY 10027
N O N P RO F I T
U . S . P O S TA G E
P A
I
D
N E W YO R K , N Y
PERMIT NO. 8048
New England’s rosh agam instructs a young camper.
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KO L O T R A M A H
From Rabbi Mitchell Cohen
National Ramah Commission Director
T
his has been a wonderful year of celebration for Ramah camps. California’s 50th,
Wisconsin’s 60th, and Darom’s 10th anniversaries are all being celebrated this year, and our
other camps have much to celebrate as well.
More children than ever attended a Ramah program last summer, as over 8,500 campers and
staff benefited from the 2006 Ramah experience. And
we are growing!
Ramah in the Rockies, merely a dream for many
years, is closer than ever to reality, as 360 gorgeous
acres have been purchased near Denver, and we are
now working closely with Jewish community partners
to build support for this venture and to hopefully open
our eighth Ramah overnight camp in 2010. As I speak
about this new Ramah camp with our Conservative
Movement families and rabbis in Texas, Colorado and
other parts of the mid-continent/southwest regions of
the United States, as well as Mexico and the Rocky
mountain section of Canada, it becomes clearer to me
that Ramah camping can have such a positive impact
not only on the individuals attending, but on the synagogues, youth groups, day schools, and other Jewish
institutions in each community.
What started in Conover, Wisconsin in 1947 with
90 campers has had such an incredible impact on world
Jewry! We will commemorate the 60th anniversary
of the Ramah camping movement with a major conference and celebration at JTS on October 14, 2007.
For a new publication on Ramah camping, we have
been analyzing the impact of Ramah on our alumni in
general, and on specific segments of our community.
We find, over and over, that Ramah camping leads to
greater positive Jewish identity, increased levels of religious observance and better educated
Jews. We also know, among other findings, that
(1) so many families of our special needs campers
have drawn closer to Jewish life; (2) hundreds if
not thousands of couples fell in love and married someone they met at Ramah; (3) funders
have become inspired because of the impact they see
from their generous donations to Ramah camps; (4)
Zionism at Ramah has created deeper and longer-lasting connections with Israel, and (5) so many former
Ramah shlichim lead more religious lives in Israel due
to their Ramah experiences!
As we begin the next 60 years of Ramah camping,
we must not pat ourselves on the back, but we must
face today’s challenges with strength and ingenuity. We
must continue to build excellence into every aspect of
our camps’ educational and recreational programming,
we must rebuild and renovate more of our facilities, we
must train our staffs to be even more skilled in dealing
with the wide range of issues our campers present, and
we must sharpen our message to the Jewish community that Ramah camping is the absolute best option for
more and more Jewish families.
The Torah describes in Exodus 14:8 that the Children of Israel left Egyptian bondage b’yad Ramah - with
their heads held high, proud to identify as a free nation.
Thousands of years later, Ramah still signifies pride.
We are proud to continue pursuing our vision of a passionate yet open-minded commitment to religious observance, and we are especially proud of our unique
brand of creating intensely Jewish camp communities.
Ramah Celebrates
60 Years of Camping
Sunday, October 14, 2007
The National Ramah Commission is hosting a celebration
of the 60th anniversary of the Ramah Camping Movement on
Sunday, October 14, 2007 at The Jewish Theological Seminary.
Onward from 60
vtkvu vba ohaa
Visit www.campramah.org for more information and to register.
From Dr. Arnold Eisen
Chancellor-elect of
The Jewish Theological Seminary
A
s I prepare to assume the leadership of The Jewish
Theological Seminary, I am excited about working
with all the Ramah camps, which have contributed so
significantly to the leadership of our movement. Our
Ramah camps are shining examples of inspiring Conservative Jewish communities which continue to motivate thousands of young people each summer. Camp
Ramah is among the best experiences available to our
young people. Ramah is one of the great achievements
of JTS, and I look forward to helping our camping system grow and thrive in the coming decades.
From Morton M. Steinberg
National Ramah Commission President
M
y term as president of the National Ramah Commission will conclude in the beginning of October, just as we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the
founding of Ramah. Serving as president over the past
four years has been a true privilege. Ramah has been
a major influence throughout my life. It is good to be
able to give back to an institution from which so much
was received.
The NRC has made great strides over the past
four years. Here are a few highlights:
• Ramah in the Rockies, with great commitment
from its leadership in Denver, is well on the road
to becoming our eighth overnight camp;
• the Israel Seminar, and indeed all of the Ramah
Programs in Israel, are stronger than ever with full enrollments;
• the Ramah Day Camp in Nyack is at capacity and
major capital improvements are being made annually, all under the guidance of its dynamic director, Amy Skopp Cooper, who also serves as the
National Assistant Director;
• our new international programming has been exceptionally well received, with counselor/staff trips
to Germany and Argentina and plans for further
expansion;
• NRC is now a member of the Leadership Council
for Conservative Judaism, giving Ramah greater
exposure to the senior leadership of our movement;
• our warm relationship with The Jewish Theological Seminary, and in particular the Davidson
Graduate School of Jewish Education, has been
enhanced and has matured professionally; and
• we are developing programs in cooperation with
all of the Ramah camps to focus on national fund
raising opportunities, marketing and recruitment.
Our camps are healthy; the outlook is very good.
Ramah will continue to provide inspiration and, in the
words of Himnon Ramah, a pathway through life for
our campers and staff. The credit for these accomplishments must be shared with the officers and directors
of the NRC, all of whom are devoted to the success
of Ramah. And none of this would have been possible
without the inspiring leadership, tact,
diplomacy and vision of our National
Director, Rabbi Mitch Cohen, and his
professional staff, with whom, without exception, it has been a pleasure to
work. May they continue to go from
strength to strength in the years ahead.
Editorial Staff
Nancy B. Scheff, Editor
Aleeza Paul, Assistant Editor
Sarah Chabon, Graphic Designer
National Ramah Commission
Morton M. Steinberg, President
Dr. Charles T. Mann, Senior Vice President
Rabbi Mitchell H. Cohen, National Director
Amy Skopp Cooper, National Assistant Director
Jeffrey M. Goodman, National Business Manager
Kolot Ramah is published by the
National Ramah Commission, Inc.
3080 Broadway, New York, NY 10027
(212) 678-8881, fax (212) 749-8251
www.campramah.org
Spring 2007 2
Ramah Wisconsin celebrated its 60th anniversary
with an alumni Shabbaton and a festive community-wide
Saturday night event on March 10, 2007. Standing beneath
the banner in the photo below are (l-r) Rabbi Burton
Cohen, Wisconsin Director 1960-74 and National Ramah
Director 1974-89; Rabbi Hillel Silverman, Wisconsin Director 1949-50; Rabbi David Soloff, Wisconsin
Director 1975 - present; and Rabbi Mitchell Cohen,
National Ramah Director 2003 - present.
Directors from 50 years of camping at Ramah California
were the honored guests at a gala celebration in Ojai on
December 3, 2006.
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KO L O T R A M A H
Ramah leaders travel to Buenos Aires
R A M A H YA C H A D UKRAINE
A M Y S KO P P C O O P E R
A
s part of the “Ramah World Outreach,” a new
venture of the National Ramah Commission,
I accompanied a group of ten senior Ramah counselors
to Buenos Aires this past December. The purposes of
the trip were to work in Argentinean Masorti summer
camps, create social connections among young adults,
and encourage meaningful dialogue between two vibrant Diaspora communities.
The trip was an unbelievable success. The Ramah
staff quickly integrated into Argentinean camp culture,
led activities, taught songs and dance, and served as
phenomenal Jewish role models. There are new friendships, promises to meet up in Jerusalem, and hopes of
reuniting at Ramah camps this July and then again in
Buenos Aires next DecemThere are new friendships, ber.
As one Argentinean
promises to meet up in
rabbi said, “We are thirty
Jerusalem and hopes of
years late starting this rereuniting at Camp Ramah lationship but start it we
must.”
this July and then
We cannot underestiagain in Buenos Aires
mate the power and impact
that a Ramah experience
next December.
will have on our future
M
idreshet Yerushalayim at the Schechter
Institute of Jewish Studies sponsors
Jewish education in the Ukraine, in Hungary,
and in Israel for the large Jewish populations
who were deprived of any connection to Jewish heritage under Communist regimes. Camp
Ramah Yachad, located near Kiev, has since
1993 become the pivotal Jewish “life-changing”
experience for thousands of children living in
the Ukraine. Each summer 200 Jewish children,
most of them pupils in Midreshet Yerushalayim
schools, share a joyous Jewish experience that
stays with them all their lives. Camp Ramah
Yachad has earned a reputation for providing
the highest level of Jewish experiential learning
guided by a philosophy of religious pluralism and
strong Zionist values in a warm, nurturing environment.
leaders both here and in Argentina. During my time
in Argentina, I saw young people begin to connect,
observed collaborative work, participated in engaging dialogue and shared an inspirational Shabbat. And,
imagine the scene two years from now, at emotional
Ramah/Masorti reunions in Buenos Aires, Wingdale,
Conover, and Nyack.
Amy Skopp Cooper is the assistant director of the National Ramah Commission and the director of Camp Ramah
in Nyack.
Counselors attend NRC’s
Weinstein Institute in Ojai
C
ounselors from all the Ramah overnight camps
and Ramah Nyack attended the National Ramah
Commission’s 2007 Bert B. Weinstein Institute for
Staff Training, which took place January 1 through
January 4 at Camp Ramah in California. These 46
counselors, representing some of the best young leaders in the Ramah movement, were treated to a trip to
sunny Ojai for four intensive days of learning, training,
and program sharing. Their itinerary included a visit to
the campus of the University of Judaism. They all went
home with greater Jewish inspiration and an eagerness
to get back to camp. Some of the Ramah directors and
assistant directors also attended the Institute, both as
instructors as well as to work closely with their own
madrichim.
Camp Ramah-NOAM in Israel
T
he Masorti youth movement in Israel, NOAM,
runs youth programming throughout the year,
as well as a three-week Ramah summer camp in the
Galil. Pictured below are enthusiastic participants in
the Summer 2006 camp program. Unfortunately, the
entire camp had to be evacuated last summer when
Hezbollah missiles fell on the nearby town of Hadera.
All campers and staff returned home safely and look
forward to a peaceful and joyful Summer 2007 experience. NOAM director, Ze’ev Kainan, former Ramah
and USY shaliach, came to the Ramah Shabbaton in
Israel this past January and spoke to Ramah shlichim
about the ongoing partnership between Conservative
youth programming in Israel and North America.
NAT IONA L R A M A H
COMMISSION HOLDS
W I N T E R SH A BBATON
IN ISRAEL
North American staff in Germany
R
amah directors came together at Neve
Ilan near Jerusalem for a Shabbat in February, where they were joined by 65 North
American Ramahniks studying in Israel for the
year, 85 Israeli shlichim who worked at Ramah in
2006, and Ramah Israel staff members. Spirited
singing, davening, and discussions on the impact
of shlichim on Ramah took place during these
25 hours of reconnecting with old friends and
making new friends, all dedicated to the mission
of Ramah. Overall, 185 people experienced this
Ramah movement-wide Shabbat.
F
Romance at Ramah:
We Want Your Story!
Since 1947, thousands at Ramah have fallen
in love and married someone they first
met at a Ramah camp or Israel program.
If you’re one of these lucky people, please
register at www.ramahmarriages.org
and tell us your story.
Guess who’s coming to dinner? Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, Sarah, pose
with Ramah Nyack staff members, who were gathered
for a reunion in Jerusalem.
or 10 days in May 2006, senior summer leaders
(mostly rashei edot) from all the Ramah camps explored Berlin, Germany in a program sponsored by
Bridge of Understanding, a German organization
dedicated to bringing North American Jews to Germany for educational seminars and touring. The program
culminated with a Shabbaton, organized by Ramah
in conjunction with Rabbi Gesa Ederberg, Masorti
rabbi in Berlin. She invited youth leaders and members
of Berlin’s newly-forming Masorti community to join
the Shabbaton for meals, services, singing and extensive discussions on a wide range of subjects.
Participants grappled with the many difficult issues
presented by this trip and were inspired by the growing
Masorti community. All of the participants returned
home re-dedicated to Ramah camping and eager to
share their experiences with campers and staff.
Spring 2007 3
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KO L O T R A M A H
Tribute to a fallen hero
Ramah Poconos honors the memory of Michael Levin
M
ichael Levin z”l, a very special member of the Ramah
Poconos family, lost his life in combat in Lebanon
last summer. Michael spent many years as a Ramah Poconos
camper and staff member. On August 2, 2006, Ramah Poconos director, Rabbi Todd Zeff, sent the following letter to
the Ramah Poconos community:
With great sadness we write to tell you that Michael Levin, a long-time member of the Ramah Poconos community, who went on aliyah and was serving in the army, was killed on August 1 in Lebanon.
Michael had joined an elite combat unit of paratroopers who fought a fierce battle with Hezbollah terrorists in the southern Lebanese village of Ayta-al-Shaab.
Michael was killed in battle, together with two other
Israeli soldiers.
Michael was deeply connected to Camp Ramah,
having attended as a camper for many years, and having worked here until
his aliyah after camp in
“Mike was such a good
2002. Mike also worked
friend. His community was at the Ramah Day Camp
in Philadelphia. Ramah,
made up of friends from
Ramah and USY. ... I can’t and Conservative Judaism,
were central aspects of his
believe that he’s gone.”
life, and the basis of so
many of his friendships.
Michael came to visit Ramah Poconos on Visiting
Day. His friends took such pride in his decision to live
in Israel and fight to defend Israel from its enemies.
He was a driven, wonderful young man who pursued
his Zionist dreams. He had a
wonderful, warm heart and an
infectious smile. The impact of
his life, and death, is reverberating throughout our camp and
the wider Ramah community.
He will be greatly missed.
Michael is survived by his parents, Mark and Harriet Levin, and by his two sisters,
Dara and Elisa. Dara, his twin sister, has been working
this summer at the Ramah Day Camp.
According to Michael’s long-time close friend from
Ramah, Lital Rashi, “Mike was such a good friend.
His community was made up of friends from Ramah
and USY, as well as the new friends he made in Israel.
Mike believed in the Jewish community, and our need
to dedicate ourselves to our future. I can’t believe that
he’s gone.”
Kevin Waloff, another close friend, said, “Mike
did what he believed in. We should all be so fortunate
to follow our dreams and pursue our Judaism passionately.”
In Michael’s Nativ yearbook, he is pictured with
an Israeli flag, with the quote, “You can’t fulfill your
dream unless you dare to risk it all.”
As the campers at the Ramah Day Camp and Camp
Ramah in the Poconos continue to laugh and sing and
enjoy everything about Camp Ramah as Michael once
did, many in these communities will recall, with great
sadness, the ultimate sacrifice made by a close friend.
The entire camp gathered together on the migrash to say “L’hitraot” to the dozens of hanichim and tzevet from Ramah Nyack
who were traveling to Israel after camp ended.
Campers and staff have never been happier to be blue at
Ramah Darom. During Yom Sport, participants make the
letter f (kaf ) with their hands to symbolize the word kujf
(kachol - blue).
T H E I M PA C T O F
R A M A H ON SHL ICHI M
A Darom mishlachat member
expresses her feelings
E
sther Brownstein was a second-year shlicha at Ramah Darom last summer. Her
parents are olim from Britain. Esther worked with
Gesher, the oldest edah, last summer because she
wanted to encourage them to spend time in Israel.
She wrote this letter to Rabbi Loren Sykes, director
of Ramah Darom, at the end of last summer.
Rabbi Sykes, Shalom!
Well, now that I am back in Israel I have had
a few days to think about this summer. People
keep asking me—“How was it?”
“Was it worth it—going just for camp?”
And I have one clear answer to everyone.
“Yes.”
And I want to thank you. To thank you for
giving me the opportunity to return to the place
I forgot I loved so much. A place that lets me
discover the real Jew within me. A place that
lets me express my thoughts and feelings and
share them in a learning experience. A place that
makes me confident I have made the choice in
studying—among other things—Jewish education. (Even if this does mean the chances of my
coming back next summer are even smaller.)
Thank you for letting me experience all that
once again this summer.
Looking forward to seeing you in Israel
soon!!
Funding new staff initiatives
Wisconsin’s Kikar Society adds innovation to programming
T
he Kikar Society, established in 2003 and funded
by contributions from many families, has become a
major programming resource for Ramah Wisconsin.
In Summer 2006, fourteen projects proposed by staff
members were prepared and implemented, greatly enriching the camp experience.
The Kikar Society is the ultimate win-win situation: 1) Staff members propose programs that they
would like to develop in the off-season and implement
the following summer; 2) Programs that are selected
Ramah Wisconsin’s kikar is one of the most well-used and
well-loved locations in camp.
Spring 2007 4
receive funding from the Kikar Society; 3) The staff
members return the following summer to implement
the program; and 4) Campers and staff benefit from
an enriched Ramah experience thanks to innovative
programming!
One 2006 Kikar Society project was a new course
in “Exploring Israeli Culture Through Its Popular
Music.” Senior counselors Mathew Rotenberg and
Avi Herring spent the 2005-2006 year in Israel on
the USY Nativ program. They developed a course
on Israeli popular music which they taught to Machon
campers during Summer 2006. Matt and Avi systematically gathered lyrics from popular singing groups in
Israel, attended their concerts and discussed the music with groups of students and other attendees at the
concerts. Their course analyzed the lyrics and helped
campers understand the context of the songs. They
analyzed the audience for each song, and the singer’s
background, as well as the cultural, political, and spiritual values embedded in the lyrics and music. Campers
studied the songs in the original Hebrew and learned
many of the nuances of the spoken language. The
course helped campers understand and explore many
of the challenges facing modern Israelis.
Immediately visible to all who enter through the gates of
Ramah California is a 30-kilowatt solar panel installation on the roof of the Gindi Dining Hall. The system,
donated by Ramah alum and parent, Dr. David Braun,
is the first of a three-stage effort to bring solar power to
Ramah. The solar panel system will save Ramah California
more than $30,000 in annual energy costs, will prevent
thousands of pounds of harmful gases from entering the
environment and will be a teaching tool for educating
Ramah campers about the Jewish imperative to take care
of God’s world.
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KO L O T R A M A H
What I learned as rosh drama
Lessons from my first summer at Ramah Berkshires
SHIR A FREIDLIN
T
his entire summer was an eight-week learning experience for me. I came in with very little idea of
what to expect, especially when it came to the drama
department. What would it mean for me to teach drama at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires? What is
Jewish about drama?
I learned I can make things happen and that people
really do come together to see things through. I learned
that children have natural reserves and will work hard
if they feel that the outcome is worthwhile. The confidence I gained this summer is due to the confidence
that the camp leadership had in me to make my programs run effectively.
I worked with some really great kids this sum-
mer. I was impressed by
their Hebrew and their
I learned that children
have natural reserves and understanding of Jewish
tradition. They worked on
will work hard if they
their own, choreographing
feel that the outcome is
musical numbers, memorizing lines, and trying to
worthwhile.
fit bulky Hebrew translation into songs written for English syllabification.
I discovered, not to my surprise, that Ramah camps
are important. They create a Conservative Jewish cocoon that engenders Jewish feeling and practice in
campers and staff alike. It sparks and kindles interest in
Jewish subjects of all kinds. I overheard conversations
about Judaism that I doubt
I would hear at a secular
summer camp or a public
school: Three staff members, lounging in a hammock by the agam, read
books from three different
periods in Jewish history;
a boy practices his Torah
portion on the bleachers
during a baseball game; a
conversation initiated by a
camper leads to a discussion of the lack of Jewish
values displayed in Disney’s
The Little Mermaid.
I like Camp Ramah.
I fit in. Issues that concern me and a way of life
The outdoor amphitheater at Ramah Berkshires sets the stage for Tzeirim’s production of
that I find meaningful are
Machazemer, the Hebrew-language version of High School Musical.
A special reunion
Ramah Wisconsin’s basketball program received a great
boost when Ramah Wisconsin Committee member David
Sherman arranged a visit to camp by NBA player Mark
Madsen of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Mark shared with
staff his experiences in the NBA as a devout Mormon and
led a fantastic basketball clinic with campers.
practiced here. At Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, on
Visitor’s Day, when the first-month campers were going home, I realized that I wanted to buy a camp sweatshirt. I realized I am invested. I’m proud to be part of
the Camp Ramah in the Berkshires community, to be
invested in improving the experience for campers and
staff for years to come.
Shira Freidlin was a Shapiro Fellow at Ramah Berkshires
last summer. She is currently studying at The Conservative
Yeshiva in Jerusalem and will begin studies at the University
of Judaism’s Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies in Los Angeles
this fall.
on the shores of Skeleton Lake
Ramah Canada alumni reunite after 40 years
Excerpted from articles by J A N E PA Z N I K- B O N DA R I N
I
n June 2006, an extraordinary reunion took place at
Camp Ramah in Canada, as alumni from the 1960’s
gathered at camp to reminisce and reflect…
About a year ago, a friendly but unknown voice on
the telephone asked, “Is this Janie Paznik?” I laughed.
It’s been a long time since anyone called me that, and
even then, mostly at home.
The voice belonged to Johnny, now Jonathan; actually Rabbi Jonathan Panitz, USN, Retired. We’d
attended Camp Ramah in Canada together in 1960 and
1962, an experience I remember fondly if faintly. Ramah is an educational camp run under the auspices of
The Jewish Theological Seminary, “the camping arm
of Conservative Judaism.” You could learn to swim and
to speak Hebrew at the same time. As I remember, one
had to do the latter in order to do the former. The
camp did a good job then, as I hope it still does, inculcating a pride in identity that shaped lives.
We returned on a Sunday in June, trekked up the
Ramah Day Camp in Philadelphia’s three oldest edot experienced Pennsylvania’s natural surroundings while camping out in
Hickory Run State Park in the Pocono Mountains. Campers, staff and mishlachat are pictured here in the park’s Boulder Field, taking a
break from rock climbing and hiking within the 16 acres of boulders created by glacial remains in the area.
hill to the Machon bunks in a drizzle that became a
rain, found the staircase that was only being built toward the end of our summer, and walked into our tzrifim (bunks).
We came on a pilgrimage to find ourselves, and we
did. We go all the way back, back to the first year of
camp, 1960. Might as well be 1860, right? We know…
it’s a long time ago. We were your age then, and now
we have turned into your grandparents. Scary. And it
happens so fast. Trust me on this one: You’ll look in the
mirror one day, and the person staring back at you will
be a lot older than the person looking out.
We were between fourteen and sixteen years old,
students at public schools and yeshivas (they were not
called “day schools” yet). Americans who’d attended
Camp Ramah in the Poconos, we knew the “ropes,”
so the camp director, Levi Soshuk, and the educational director, Aryeh Rohn, asked us to join with the
new Canadian campers to start this new place.
For most of us, it was the longest trip we’d yet
taken, and to the most beautiful place we’d ever seen.
That place—the campsite and the lake—has stayed in
our hearts for nearly half a century. We wondered if
they would look as big and beautiful as they had when
we were young. They did. We have traveled to many
places, exotic places, but this place is still one of the
places of our hearts.
Our voices from 1960 join yours in 2006.
At Ramah New England, camper Daniel Spektor relaxes
in Kfar Nivonim, playing the guitar.
Spring 2007 5
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KO L O T R A M A H
Rebuilding in New Orleans
Poconos Gesher campers journey to perform mitzvot
T
he Gesher edah (entering 11th grade) from Camp
Ramah in the Poconos spent nine days this
past summer traveling from the Poconos through the southern United States and back again. After a stop in Whitwell, TN to visit the Children’s Holocaust Memorial &
Paper Clip Project, Adat Ha’Gesher continued to the
deep south. The journey culminated in a three-day volun-
Our trip began with a drive to Columbus, Ohio, where
we stayed overnight. Along the way we stopped in
Louisville, Kentucky and toured the Louisville Slugger Museum. We drove for a few more hours until we
reached a small, hospitable synagogue in Chattanooga,
Tennessee, where we were served a wonderful BBQ
dinner. The next morning we woke up early to deliver
numerous books to a synagogue
attempting to rebuild its lost library. We also had the opportunity to meet with a representative from the local JCC and hear
about the Jewish community in
New Orleans. Although we have
spent a great deal of time aboard
the bus, it has proven to be fantastic bonding time and each of
our stops have provided memories
which add to our Gesher experience.
—Sam Balakirsky
One of the highlights of Ramah Day Camp in Chicago’s 2006 summer season was the debut of brand new
sports courts. Adjacent to the already existing sports
fields, the courts were constantly in use and allowed
for concurrent games of basketball and tennis. Campers
also enjoyed playing hockey on the courts. The overall
sports program, which includes baseball, football, kickball,
newcomb, and a myriad of other sports and games, was
greatly enhanced by the addition of the new courts.
teer project with Habitat for Humanity in New Orleans,
where campers learned how to clear some of the damage from
Hurricane Katrina and assisted in rebuilding homes. On the
way back to Poconos, the Gesher edah experienced the warm
hospitality of Ramah Darom for a relaxing Shabbat.
Two Gesher campers write about their journey:
Today was a very busy and rewarding day down in
New Orleans. We began our day at the crack of dawn
and quickly left our hotel to begin our first day working with Habitat for Humanity. As soon as we got to
the site, we all knew that we were in for a day of hard,
yet rewarding work. At the site, we split up into two
groups: One group organized the warehouse, and one
group painted bunk beds for future volunteers to use
for later projects. Although we were hard at work for
most of the day, we still found time to make our own
fun with our Ramah ruach at hand.
—Brandon DeShields
Kol Ramah, the cutting edge media outlet for camper and staff creativity at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, broadcasts
throughout each program day, filling the camp airways with fascinating interviews, modern and traditional Hebrew music, and
important public announcements. Shown here are campers broadcasting from the radio station studio of Kol Ramah.
inspiration
Tisha B’Av: An opportunity for
Programming at Ramah Palmer creates a powerful learning experience
BEN HERMAN
D
uring my first summer at Camp Ramah in New
England, I gained great insight into the Ramah
educational approach, particularly on Tisha B’Av. In
previous years, the only way I had observed Tisha B’Av
was reading Eicha in synagogue. At Ramah, however, we had a very powerful day of programming that
greatly moved me and which I will remember for years
to come.
We began with the Ma’ariv service and Eicha reading. Each edah was given candles and when it was time
to read Eicha, the lights were turned off and the candles
were lit. I generally do not cry, but I did after this Eicha
reading because it enabled me to empathize with the
history of my people and the communal mourning.
The following morning, the hinuch (teaching) staff
Campers celebrated Ramah Wisconsin’s 60th season
with t-shirts proclaiming “60 in ’06.”
Spring 2007 6
did a simulation of the 1492 expulsion
from Spain. We divided the staff into
three types of individuals: cardinals,
to speak for conversion; Jewish rebels, to speak for going into exile; and
crypto-Jews, to speak for becoming
Marranos. Each tzrif heard presentations by the cardinal, rebel and crypto-Jew and decided at the end which
to join. They then received a fate card
describing their group’s fate.
In the afternoon, we showed the
film Remember the Titans to the older
hanichim. We saw the sinat hinam (baseless hatred) depicted among the African-American and Caucasian members of the football team in the movie, Campers pray in the grove at Ramah Palmer.
and how individual players really had
to struggle to come together to make a successful team. attended the learning sessions that were held during
We had breakout discussions where we talked about breakfast and lunch. There were so many hanichim at
hatred we have faced in our hometowns and if we have the lunch session that Rabbi Josh Kulp had to make
tried to combat that hatred.
extra copies of his materials!
Perhaps the most moving program of all on Tisha These programs enabled me to experience TiB’Av was a ceremony that took place at sundown. We sha B’Av at Ramah in a fuller way than ever before. I
sat on the beach and listened to several Israeli shlichim learned that at Camp Ramah, Tisha B’Av is not only a
discuss the ongoing war with Lebanon. Then we saw day of mourning but also one of reflecting on how to
a video of Jewish musicians singing Hazak, Hazak, a move ourselves from despair into hope, from sorrow
song about being strong in times of conflict. Finally, into joy. I feel privileged to have been able to take a
we saw boatloads of people on the far side of the agam role in raising the awareness of these hanichim and in
create fire over the water. It was an extremely powerful working with a dedicated staff.
effect. The ceremony only lasted twenty minutes, yet it Ben Herman is a JTS Rabbinical School student and
had a great impact.
was a Shapiro Fellow at Camp Ramah in New England last
One last aspect of Tisha B’Av at Ramah that summer.
amazed me was seeing how many people fasted and
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KO L O T R A M A H
Tza’adah at last
California Machon camper reflects on her final summer
N ATA L I E K AT Z Excerpts reprinted with permission from the LA Jewish Journal
I
had been waiting seven years, and my Machon summer
at Camp Ramah in California was finally here. It
would be different from every other summer, because
we would finally be the oldest group. I looked forward to
making every moment of this incredible summer count.
There is one program in particular that embodies
all of the emotionalism and meaning of the Machon
summer: Tza’adah. Tza’adah is a five-day, four-night
overnight trip that takes campers far from the boundaries
of camp and into the nature of Northern California,
where we bond with friends while experiencing the
outdoors. We drove for what felt like a lifetime to Big
Sur in Northern California. The next morning, I set off
with the rest of the adventurous campers on a hike. We
trekked all the way up a
beautiful cliff overlooking Even though I will never
the ocean, singing songs to
pass the time and admiring be a camper again, the
the scenery. Later that memories I created this
evening, after arriving at summer will last forever.
Lake Casitas, our campsite
for the next three nights, we sat around the bonfire
and sang camp songs, aided by packets of the best songs
hand-selected by our wonderful counselors. I will keep
the songbook forever as a memento of this journey.
The last day, we were given a choice between
kayaking, rock-climbing and mountain-biking. I
could feel the adrenaline pulsing through my veins.
The counselors yelled, “Charge!” and we sprinted
for the doors. It was complete pandemonium inside.
I ran around yelling, cheering and hugging all
my friends, making sure to squeeze extra tight.
Tza’adah defined my camp experience, and I
know that even though I will never be a camper again,
the memories I created this summer will last forever.
Natalie Katz, a 10th grader from Manhattan Beach,
CA, has attended Camp Ramah in Ojai for seven years.
chose kayaking. The group leader gave us the task
of fitting as many people in one kayak as possible
without it tipping over. This may not seem to be
difficult, but it was unbelievably hilarious and so hard!
On our last day, we hiked eight miles back to camp
from Lake Casitas, singing, laughing and stopping for
Powerade on the way, a necessity in the sweltering heat.
Tza’adah had finally come to a close, but we were
not going to finish without our last hurrah. As is
tradition at Camp Ramah, the Machon campers
run into the hadar ochel, the dining hall, at the
end of lunch, giving hugs to friends and family.
We formed platoons and began to march to the
hadar. The platoons lined up at different entrances. I
Solelim campers (entering 8th grade) at Ramah Berkshires take a break from an exciting bicycle excursion in
the lower Berkshire Mountains.
Seven summers of transformation
A Ramah Darom camper speaks on her last Friday night at camp
L AU RE N ME NDE L
I
grew up here. As far as I’m concerned, my childhood
didn’t really start until my first summer at Ramah
Darom. I was a very shy, very scared Sollelimer—the
first Sollelim in camp. I could not yet embrace the family in all of the friends, counselors, and Rabbi; and I
could not yet see the memories created at any given
moment.
But by Cochavim, I understood completely; my
life timeline adjusted accordingly from B.C. (Before
Camp) to A.C. (After Camp); and I had been changed
because of it.
Ramah Darom Gesher campers enjoy each other’s company.
That summer in Cochavim was a complete turnaround
for my camp experience. I don’t know what did it, but
I returned to camp the next year with excitement and
a love for camp that had not been there in previous
summers. Camp had transformed from just something
to do for the summer to a second home full of silliness,
fun and best friends.
I cannot pinpoint any moment as the most meaningful, as the instant that affected my life to the greatest
degree. It is the culmination of all my summers here
at Ramah—and the experiences which they brought
me—that have made me who I am today.
My friends from home think that practicing Judaism is a burden because of all the rules and regulations.
Camp has instilled in me a love of Judaism that I could
not have gotten anywhere else. It has taught me that
there is more to being Jewish than halakhah. Judaism is
fun, interesting and thought-provoking. After camp I
bring home with me everything I’ve learned here and
continue to observe kashrut, go to services and look for
opportunities to learn more about Judaism.
Camp is my getaway from the real world. Home is
so fast paced and at camp we have the time to enjoy the
little things that aren’t as important at home, or even
possible sometimes.
So, to the camp: Never take a moment for granted.
Every moment you waste being mad at a friend, skipping programs or complaining will be moments of your
summer that you can never get back. When you get to
Gesher, and it’s your last days as a camper, you will look
back and treasure every moment you spent here.
To the younger edot:
Keep coming back to The culmination of all my
camp, because every year summers here at Ramah
it gets better and better. have made me who I
The bonds you will make
here are impossible to am today.
make anywhere else.
To all my tzevet: Our Gesher counselors have made
so many sacrifices for us and worked so hard all summer. I want to let you guys know that your dedication,
hard work, love and friendship has made a huge difference in all of our summers. I can’t wait to be back on
tzevet so I can make an impact on campers’ summers
like you all have done for me.
In ten years, when we all look back on our Gesher
experience, we might not remember specific peulot erev
or y’mei meyuchad, but we will all remember how the
summer made us feel. We’ll remember the excitement
of the first day, the ruach we had on Friday nights. And
we’ll all remember the sadness we’re feeling this Shabbat and the tears we will shed when we have to leave
our home.
We aren’t the first Gesher, and we won’t be the last.
But we are Gesher ‘06 and we have a bond that no one
can take from us, a bond we will never forget. Monday
morning will be one of the hardest things I’ll ever go
through. But as much as it hurts, I know that this is our
time to close one door at Ramah Darom while we wait
for another door to open. We’ll be back in two years as
the best tzevet ever.
I started camp seven years ago knowing no one,
and I’m leaving with the best group of friends I’ll ever
have. Shabbat Shalom, Gesher 2006.
Lauren Mendel was a Gesher camper (entering 11th
grade) at Ramah Darom last summer.
Nevonim campers (entering 5th grade) at Ramah Nyack
share the experience of reading Torah, many for the first
time.
Campers enjoy tubing fun at Canada Ramah.
Spring 2007 7
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KO L O T R A M A H
Ramah camps show
solidarity with Israel
Ramah Darom’s Gesher edah attends D.C. rally
R AFI LEHMANN
T
he temperature was a sweltering ninety-seven degrees and the entire edah was feeling very sweaty.
We embarked upon a relatively short fifteen-minute
journey on foot from the Smithsonian Air and Space
Museum to Freedom Plaza where Ramah Darom’s
Gesher edah (entering 11th grade) would take part in a
Washington D.C. citywide pro-Israel rally. The Jewish
Federation of Greater Washington planned the rally in
under thirty-six hours and we were not exactly sure
what to expect. As the group approached the plaza, we
started hearing shouting and cheering accompanied by
the waving of myriad Israeli flags.
Gesher, the oldest campers at Ramah Darom, had
the opportunity to hear impassioned speeches from
leaders representing all major world religions along
with legislators on their lunch break. The edah waved
signs and banners showing its support for Israel in this
difficult time and made its presence at the rally very palpable. As the rally was winding down, Adat Ha’Gesher
came together arm-in-arm and began to sing and cheer
with incredible passion.
We began by singing Od Yavoh. As the singing
increased in volume and
excitement, a crowd be- For Gesher, the words
gan to form around us.
“Next year in
The group was comprised
of journalists, other Israel Jerusalem…” are much
activists, and a number more than a messianic
of unassuming passers- hope. Next year, at this
by. Many of them asked,
“Who are these folks?!” very time, they will be
We would answer their dancing in the streets of
question very proudly, Jerusalem while on Ramah
“We are Adat Ha’Gesher
Israel Seminar.
from
Camp
Ramah
Darom!” Eventually, the
singing would be accompanied by dancing. The song
Am Yisrael Chai was not at all unfamiliar to me; however, this time, the words resonated in a way unlike
any other. Fifty-eight 16-year-olds representing a wide
array of communities in the South were singing very
spiritedly.
The last song that Gesher repeated over and over
again was L’shanah ha’ba’ah b’Yerushalayim! — Next year
in Jerusalem. This time, the context in which it was
sung gave the words much more meaning than usual. For Gesher, the words “Next year in Jerusalem…”
are much more than a messianic hope. Next year, at
this very time, they will be dancing in the streets of
Jerusalem while on Ramah Israel Seminar.
As the edah stood in the plaza after the rally and
davened Minhah, Gesher knew that what we experienced would stay with us for a lifetime.
Rafi Lehmann, a JTS Rabbinical School student, was a
Shapiro Fellow at Ramah Darom last summer.
Canada’s Alonim volunteer at Toronto rally
CHANIE ANTFLECK
O
n Wednesday, July 26, 2006, Ramah Canada’s
Alonim edah (entering 11th grade) was privileged
to participate in an amazing, spirit-lifting and thoughtprovoking event. They were accompanied by mishlachat,
who added some “authentic Israel” to an Israel rally organized by members of Canada’s Jewish community.
A rally under the slogan “Stand with Israel” was held
at the Toronto Centre for the Arts that night. In front of
3,000 people in the main hall, 1,800 in another auditorium, and over 5,000 at Mel Lastman Square, speakers
from many organizations spoke about what needed to
be done concerning the war raging between Israel and
Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. The main focus of the
rally was to unify in support of Israel, particularly in the
face of harsh international criticism.
The Ramah Alonim volunteers assisted with ushering and staffing the rally, handing out Israeli and Canadian
flags, which were waved throughout the night.
One of the special moments during the rally was a
live broadcast from Israel, including a successful two-way
conversation between Israeli soldiers and the people attending the event. In one instance, two brothers spoke
— one at the rally and the other in Israel! Certainly, that
was the emotional highlight of the rally.
The rally stressed the importance of supporting
Israel in her time of need and really proved how help
from afar can boost morale in Israel.
There was also considerable press coverage at the
Centre for the Arts. Ramah really left its mark on the
National Post, as our camp was commended for having 50
volunteers at the event and Alonim camper Ethan Eisen
was quoted. A little further down the page, mishlachat
members Yehudit, Alex and Noa were featured in a large
photo, wearing giant Israeli flags as capes.
All in all, cheering, singing and applause filled the
air, showing spirit, Canadian pride and solidarity with
California Machon campers show support at Los Angeles rally
SETH GOLDMAN
T
his past summer, Israel faced a deadly crisis with
Hezbollah terrorists. More than ever, the Jewish
homeland was in need of support from Jews around the
world. On July 23, 2006, Camp Ramah in California sent about 40 campers to participate in a pro-Israel
rally in Los Angeles. The rally, which included speeches by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Los Angeles
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and prominent religious
leaders, attracted 10,000 Israel supporters. Each speaker
was greeted with thunderous applause, and after each
speech the crowd proudly waved Israeli and American
flags. Being part of such an important event was a highlight of the summer for many of the campers. Much of
the world is against Israel, and she needs all the support
she can get. Most importantly, Israel should be a huge
part of any Jew’s identity. Jewish people throughout
southern California had a responsibility to be at the
demonstration, and we were proud to represent Camp
Ramah at this important event.
Seth Goldman was a Machon camper (entering 10th
grade) at Ramah California last summer.
Spring 2007 8
Israel. It was an incredible evening that Israel, Toronto
and Adat Ha’Alonim 2006 will never forget. Am Yisrael
Chai!
Chanie Antfleck was an Alonim camper at Ramah
Canada last summer.
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KO L O T R A M A H
Staying close during adversity
Ramah Wisconsin connects with Israel
T
he effects of the war
last summer were
felt throughout Camp
Ramah in Wisconsin.
There were senior staff
from Israel whose children were serving in the
IDF, shlichim whose units
were called up, and camp
staff and campers with
family and friends called
up or living in the north
of Israel.
After July 12, Ramah
Wisconsin invested a great
deal of attention informing its camper and staff
community about daily
news events in Israel. The
camp administration facilitated communication
with home for 35 shlichim Ambassador Dennis Ross (right) with Ramah Wisconsin director Rabbi David Soloff.
and 12 Israeli campers, and designed programs for each
camper division about the impact of the events.
For many, every day began with checking the internet. Special tefillot were added to the daily morning
minyanim. A centralized information board located in
the entrance to the Bet Am summarized daily news
from Israel. Programming staff developed appropriate options for each age group. The camp established
a phone link with the Ramah Israel Seminar group,
enabling the Wisconsin Nivonim campers to ask their
Seminar friends about their experiences.
Dennis Ross, former U. S. Ambassador to the
Middle East, spent a Shabbat at Ramah Wisconsin,
sharing his experiences and insight into the situation
unfolding in Lebanon and Israel. He met with the oldest campers and taught several sessions for American
and Israeli staff.
Most importantly, Ramah Wisconsin came together as a community to support its Israeli families.
hj ktrah og
Magshimim and Bogrim campers (entering 8th and 9th
grades) at Ramah New England participated in a program entitled “So You Think You Can Israeli Dance?”
Sub-groups of each edah choreographed Israeli dances with
specific criteria. Each group performed its dance and each
edah picked its own champion to perform at a Tzad Bet
(B-side) performance. In addition to dancing, each edah
made signs and decorations to support its winning team at
the main event.
Ramah Nyack held an Israel solidarity gathering for campers and staff this past July. Children created posters to demonstrate
their support of and love for Eretz Yisrael.
My friend from Nahariya
A Ramah Berkshires camper learns important lessons when her bunkmate’s hometown is bombed
S Y D N E Y A P P E L B A U M Excerpts reprinted with permission from the New York Jewish Week (www.thejewishweek.com)
W
hat was so indescribable about my summer
was that on the bus to Camp Ramah in the
Berkshires I had no idea what was in store for me.
I had no clue that rockets would rain on my closest
friend’s town and when she returned to Israel, she
would have to live miles away from her home in the
northern town of Nahariya.
Ayala has been my best friend since we were 10
years old. I became friends with her because she slept
on the top bunk as my bunkmate at Ramah Berkshires.
We never felt a language barrier because even when
she would speak in fast Hebrew, I seemed to understand her anyway. Ayala says that part of the reason her
English is decent is because I helped her.
I will never forget the day Ayala told us about the
rockets fired by Hezbollah. My whole edah, all 38 of
us and some counselors, was on a six-hour bus ride to
Canada, our big trip. After hearing from a counselor
that Hezbollah had fired rockets into Nahariya, Ayala
rose from her seat and sat in the back of the bus where
Ramah instills Zionist feelings among campers and staff.
there were three empty seats. I heard muffled cries and
some of my friends suggested that I go over there and
talk to Ayala. I walked over expecting to talk about her
boyfriend, who had broken up with her, so when she
told me what happened, I was shocked.
It proved hard to connect with our devastated best
friend because we couldn’t experience anything close
to what Ayala was going through. We tried our best
though. We tried to reassure Ayala when she was This summer, I learned
terrified of the thought that
her brother and sister were Israel is my home too.
fighting in the army and
wondered if her home was still standing. It was such an
awful thought to try and put myself in Ayala’s shoes. Ayala felt tragically helpless since she was safe in
America. I then realized that from safety we could
help Israel’s soldiers. I knew that I had an unopened
bottle of soap and that my other best friend had two
closed bottles of shampoo and conditioner so I could
only imagine how much the rest of camp must have
had. Ayala and I talked to our counselor and the director of camp about starting a supply drive for the Israel
Defense Forces. It was very rewarding to be able to
support the troops in Israel with our Venus razors, Burt
Bees lip balm and Crest toothpaste. But it was even
more rewarding to be a good friend to Ayala.
When Ayala left camp a week early (she leaves
early every year to return to Israel), I was so upset that
I almost wanted to leave too. The Upper East Side of
Manhattan is my home. This summer, I learned Israel
is my home too. Ayala taught me that her brother is in
the IDF not only fighting for Israel but for us, for me, as
an American Jew. Watching my best friend go through
something that most lucky people haven’t faced in their
lifetime changed me. Not only did it make me feel
thankful for my home but it made me realize that the
worst thing in life is to feel helpless and the most precious thing is to try and overcome that.
Ayala returned home on August 15, days before
the cease-fire. Her life is as normal as it can be for now.
I learned many things from Ayala; I have her to thank
for the Land of Israel. We are certainly dreamers; we
dream our generation will be the first to live in Israel
in peace.
Sydney Appelbaum was a Machon (entering 10th grade)
camper at Ramah Berkshires last summer.
Tamir Goodman, who plays professional basketball in
Israel, spent three days at Camp Ramah in the Poconos last summer. Here he is teaching Notzetzim campers
(entering 4th and 5th grade) basketball drills. Tamir also
spent time talking with Poconos campers about how he
juggles being religious and playing professional sports. In
2007, Tamir will help launch the new Ramah Basketball
Academy at Ramah Poconos.
Spring 2007 9
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SPECIAL NEEDS PROGRAMS
A special arrival and first day in Jerusalem
Ramah Wisconsin Tikvah grads travel to Israel
R A B B I E LY S E W I N I C K
T
en of the 17 travelers on this year’s Taglit-birthright israel
trip for young adults with Asperger’s Syndrome were graduates of the Ramah Wisconsin Tikvah Program.
This trip was organized through the cooperative efforts of
KOACH, Hillel, Taglit-birthright israel and Ramah
Wisconsin. The following is excerpted from an email written
by Rabbi Elyse Winick, associate director of KOACH, who
accompanied the group and provided families and friends back
home with daily updates about the group’s travels.
We are finally here!!
After multiple delays on “This was the best service
the ground and even in I ever went to. No one
the air, our group has arrived, safe, sound and made me feel stupid and I
cheerful. They were real even got to put on tefillin
troopers under circum- for the first time.”
stances which would make
a seasoned traveler chafe.
Arriving late on Wednesday, we checked into the Shalom Hotel, our base for the next several nights, in time
for dinner and well-earned rest. In addition to Rose
Sharon, co-director of the Ramah Wisconsin Tikvah
Program, who is overseeing the program, our group is
staffed by Wisconsin Tikvah staff members Lior Baruch, Emilie Botbol, Ari Gleicher and Tal Michaelis. (Rabbi Jonathan Schnitzer made a surprise
appearance to say hello, too.) D’ror Kidron of Israel is
serving as their very gentle and able tour educator.
Bright and early they joined the other KOACH
group for Shaharit at the Haas Promenade, overlooking
Jerusalem. Marvelous and uplifting davening followed
two parallel siddurim, Siddur Sim Shalom and the siddur
of the Ramah Wisconsin Tikvah Program. The seamless calling of pages led to a truly inclusive davening.
In the daily journal, one student wrote: “This was the
best service I ever went to. No one made me feel stupid
and I even got to put on tefillin for the first time.” For
us on the staff, these are days of smiles and tears.
Following Shaharit, the group descended the mountain to tour the Old City of Jerusalem, a breathtaking
experience for everyone. They seem to know all the
answers to the obscure historical trivia questions D’ror
asks and they soak up new information with a beautiful
thirst. Visiting the Kotel, two girls commented that as
they touched the wall they felt a direct connection to
the past.
It was a full and exhilarating day. After dinner,
those who liked were able to participate in a discussion
with Dr. David Mendelsson of Hebrew University,
learning about the current political situation. The rest
made an early night of it, preparing for another day’s
adventures tomorrow.
It is glorious here in Jerusalem, even though the
air is filled with winter’s chill. And we can think of
nowhere better to be.
Twelve inspiring days
New England Tikvah trip to Israel
A
dozen members of the Tikvah Program at Camp
Ramah in New England and their chaperones
visited Israel from December 20, 2006 – January 3, 2007.
Howard Blas, director of Ramah New England’s Tikvah
Program, expressed his feelings about this special experience.
“The trip was a dream come true. This was my third
Tikvah Ramah Israel trip, and the 10th trip to Israel in
the history of our Tikvah Program. We enjoyed seeing
places of historical significance, davening in so many
different places—the Kotel, outside of our guest houses
in the Negev and Galil, and at different synagogues,
purchasing souvenirs for ourselves and friends, and
supporting the Israeli economy. But, most of all, we
enjoyed seeing our many Israeli friends. Our group was
like a magnet, and the Israelis were like iron filings
— drawn to us everywhere we went. I am pleased that
our campers and program alumni (age range: 17-31) felt
comfortable in Israel and will return to their homes,
schools and communities as great shlichim and hasbara
members for Israel.”
R A M A H BER KSHIR ES
BR EIR A B’R A M A H
P RO G R A M
B
An image from Camp Yofi
Ramah Darom’s inspiring program serves families with children with autism
R A B B I LO R E N S Y K E S
I
n Summer 2005, Ramah Darom established Camp
Yofi, a five-day family camp for 20 families of Jewish children with autism. Ramah Darom’s executive director, Rabbi
Loren Sykes, was recognized by the Covenant Foundation
for Darom’s work with this innovative program.
It is Shabbat afternoon at the Mar’gam, the lakeside pavilion at Ramah Darom. A light rain falls on the
lake as the geese swim along, undisturbed. Everyone
watches as Zeev approaches the bimah. Zeev reads his
bar mitzvah speech, written with the help of his mother, adorned in a tallit hand-woven by his mother. His
father smiles broadly. Zeev’s mother reads one word
in Hebrew, from the Ashrei, and then Zeev repeats the
word, leading the entire congregation. It is not silent
during the service; in fact, there is a cacophony of talking, singing, shouting, sometimes in sentences, sometimes just fragments. Nobody blinks nor glares nor
gives a “shush;” there is an understanding that these
seemingly random voices are the voices of God on
earth, to be shouted and not silenced, to be loved and
not rejected. There are free flowing tears throughout
the service.
A year ago, I watched a conversation between
Zeev’s father and another parent. They were participating in a seminar about bar mitzvah ceremonies for
children with autism. One parent expressed fear that
her son might never be able to have a bar mitzvah.
Zeev’s father looked that parent in the eye and said, “If
all Zeev can do is say the one word of Shema, that will
Spring 2007 10
be enough and that will be his bar mitzvah!” The other
parent melted, sank to the couch in the Mercaz Aryeh
and cried. I did not ask why. I did not have to. I just
understood.
We have images of what the bar mitzvah is “supposed to be.” If a child does not fit that mold, then we
feel—or worse, are led to believe—that they cannot
have such a ceremony, that we cannot joyously mark
the level of “adulthood” that they have reached, that
they are somehow inferior. The truth is that a child
turns bar or bat mitzvah on a specific birthday. The
ceremony, an invention, can and should therefore be
reira B’Ramah at Camp Ramah in the
Berkshires is a system of supports provided to campers with learning and social challenges. Breira campers are able to participate
and benefit from all aspects of the Ramah experience. Each child’s Breira program is unique and
depends on his or her individual needs. Campers enrolled in the Breira B’Ramah program
are supported by counselors and specialists in
camp who receive training and supervision by a
licensed psychologist. Over the years, the presence of Breira at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires
has changed the camp community in its acceptance of individual differences and its awareness
that we are all created B’Tzelem Elokim (in God’s
image).
what is appropriate to the child with autism, not to
some ritual committee standard. But realizing that, for
the parent, for the committee, for the clergy, for the
community, is far from simple or obvious. If it were,
there would be no need for Camp Yofi.
We return to Aleinu, standing in the Mar’gam,
watching Zeev exceed expectations, his smile from
cheek to cheek, read a Devar Torah, stand and be blessed.
We cry with pride embracing Zeev, his radiant smile,
and Zeev’s family as our own. The rain, which Zeev
loves, stops just long enough for all of us to walk to the
hadar ochel for se’udah shelishit, the third Shabbat meal,
where a bar mitzvah cake and celebration awaits.
SPECIAL NEEDS PROGRAMS
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A wonderful place to stay
Ramah New England’s guesthouse is staffed by Tikvah “Post-Voc Eders”
H OWA R D B L A S
T
he Tikvah Program at Camp Ramah in New
England, now celebrating its 37th year, continues
to grow and evolve, offering the Ramah experience to
people of many ages with a wide range of special needs.
Last summer, we initiated a program to hire “post-voc
eders” — graduates of our Tikvah Program — as salaried employees to work in the newly-dedicated Herb
and Barbara Greenberg Tikvah Guesthouse, a
six-unit motel-quality facility. The guesthouse not
only offers meaningful work opportunities for Tikvah
campers, Vocational Education Program participants,
and Tikvah graduates, but also allows guests to experience Shabbatot and y’mei ragil at camp.
This summer, our guesthouse welcomed its first
guests — and it was filled to capacity every Shabbat
and many mid-week days (for Y’mei Iyyun, the board
meeting for the Foundation for Jewish Camping, visits
by rabbis in our communities, etc.) Each room is airconditioned, with two double beds, a bathroom, and a
sitting area. The hallmark of the Tikvah guesthouse is
the fact that it is 100% Tikvah run and operated. While
a Tikvah staff member serves as overall supervisor, her
main role is to run daily staff meetings, oversee assignment of jobs, help workers figure out how to solve
problems, and serve as a liaison to the camp director
and to the office staff member responsible for booking
guests.
Each morning, following the staff meeting, the
“post-voc eder” assigned full time to the guesthouse
opens the building for work. He and his staff (one to
two members of the Vocational Education Program)
begin the day by finding out how many rooms will be
occupied that night. The team then moves into action!
Guesthouse workers strip beds of dirty sheets, collect
towels, and clean each room. They sweep the floors,
clean the bathrooms, do all laundry, make up each
room, clean the porches and water the beautiful hanging flower baskets on the porches.
Our Voc Ed supervisor was instrumental in securing a cleaning and room preparation protocol from a
major international hotel chain, and our in-camp head
of the laundry volunteered his time to model and teach
proper techniques and steps for cleaning and making
up a guest room. Guests consistently raved about the
service and overall quality of the guesthouse.
We are proud that guests of Camp Ramah in New
England can now experience the beauty of camp in
the finest of accommodations, lovingly prepared and
Herb and Barbara Greenberg stand at the entrance to the
guesthouse run by Ramah New England Tikvah graduates.
maintained by some of “Palmer’s Finest.” And many of
our Tikvah families pray and dream that we will one
day become a year-round guesthouse — one that offers
quality service and a place of employment and camaraderie for their children.
Howard Blas is the director of Ramah New England’s
Tikvah Program.
Reflections on Brian
A special friendship develops at Ramah Canada
DON COLLERMAN-ELIAS
S
hortly after I began my first summer working as a
Judaics teacher at Camp Ramah in Canada, my
wife and I were approached by Dr. Mitch Parker,
director of the Tikvah Program. Mitch informed
us of a dilemma with a former Tikvah camper named
Brian, who had participated and thrived in the Tikvah
Program since its inception 13 years ago. For the last
few years, Brian had been too old to attend Ramah
as a camper and had been participating in the Avodah
Vocational Education Program, helping staff in the hadar ochel, in the laundry room, etc. This past summer,
Brian had once again returned to camp. After less than
one week, he had missed some of his work shifts and
had been observed wandering around camp. Mitch informed us that the camp was considering sending Brian
home unless it could find someone to assist and support
Brian.
My wife and I agreed to allow Brian to move out
of staff housing into our cabin, and to undertake the responsibilities of guiding him to his various jobs and ac-
Don Collerman-Elias (left) with Brian
tivities. While we expected this to result in more work
for the two of us, which it certainly did, we did not
expect that taking care of Brian would be so rewarding
for us. Yet, along the way we came to realize what a
remarkable man Brian is.
First of all, Brian has an infectiously warm personality. He was almost always happy with a smile on
his face and a hug for everyone he encountered. Jewish tradition teaches
Moreover, the enthusiasm us that every person is
and friendliness that he
created in God’s image.
extended to others was
not dependent on their Brian actually lives as
status or stations in life. if that were true.
To Brian, everyone was
important and worthy of a smile and a kind greeting.
Every encounter was an opportunity to make or renew
a friendship. Jewish tradition teaches us that every person is created in God’s image. Brian actually lives as if
that were true.
Secondly, Brian always takes pride and experiences
joy in his work. Throughout the summer, Brian was
unquestionably the happiest when he was helping others, always helping to the absolute best of his abilities.
Once a task was explained and demonstrated to Brian,
he would consistently perform it correctly and meticulously. He understood that each task, however small,
was necessary for the good of the Ramah community.
Brian was also often the first to offer unsolicited help.
He demonstrated a strong sense of community responsibility.
Finally, Brian celebrates life, viewing each day as
special, as the start of something new and another opportunity for more joy, laughter, and friendship. The
joy he experienced even when participating in what
most of us would consider mundane activities reminded my wife and me to recognize and appreciate aspects
of our lives that we often take for granted.
As we spent an increasing amount of time with
Brian, we were gradually drawn into Brian’s world
— a world in which one saw and treated life with love,
kindness, and compassion. And we knew that our relationship with Brian was making us better people.
Don Collerman-Elias, a JTS Rabbinical School student,
was a Shapiro Fellow at Camp Ramah in Canada last summer.
Ramah Canada Tivkah campers and staff enjoy special time together.
Building skills for the future
Ramah California has great success with Ezra Program
R
amah California’s Ezra Program is a vocational training and independent living program for
teens and young adults. “Café Ezra” is a college-style
café at which Ojai staff members can spend their free
time. By working at the café, Ezra participants have
the opportunity to develop their vocational and social
skills. In particular, participants learn essential skills
for working in the food service industry, including
cash register operation; preparation and service of iceblended coffee drinks, snow cones, and soft pretzels;
and set-up and cleaning.
Spring 2007 11
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ISRAEL PROGRAMS
There’s a Ramah Israel program for everyone! Participants in Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim (TRY) and USY High spend the spring semester at the Ramah
Jerusalem High School, studying Zionism and contemporary Israel, along with their secular academics, taking tiyulim throughout Israel, interacting with Israeli
teens and families, and learning Hebrew. On Ramah Seminar, participants spend six weeks of the summer in Israel, in an intense program that bridges the years
between being a camper and being on staff. There is an option for Seminar participants to spend ten days in Poland prior to the six weeks in Israel. The Ramah
Israel Institute (RII) custom builds two-week programs in Israel for schools, synagogues and other community organizations.
The power of Ramah Seminar
Record high enrollment; great inspiration
U
pon their return to North America, Seminar participants
wrote about their summer experiences. Here are excerpts
from their essays:
A trip to Poland brings new meaning to
a visit to the Kotel
I have gone to Camp Ramah in California for seven
summers. There was never a doubt in my mind that
after the last summer as a camper I would continue on
with my friends and spend the next summer on Ramah
Seminar. I signed up for Ramah Seminar 2006 thinking I was signing up for a touring trip around the land
of Israel with my best friends. I could not have been
more wrong.
The summer started off with a ten-day trip in
Poland. We visited concentration camps including
Auschwitz, Birkenau, Majdonek, and Treblinka. However, the focus of our time in Poland was touring the
remnants of old Jewish cities and towns. I learned of
the extent of Polish Jewry prior to the war. This made
our visits to the different camps so much more meaningful. We saw how and where people had lived before
their identities were stripped from them and they were
killed.
In Majdonek, there is an exhibit of shoes. As I
walked down the seemingly endless hallway with containers filled to the ceiling with shoes on either side of
me, I began to think and then to cry. I was now seeing six million as more than a number. I then pressed
my face against the glass container and saw everything
from a second perspective. I could see each shoe so
distinctly. Some were leather dress shoes, some were
sandals. Some were black, some were brown. Some for
a grown man, some for a toddler. To me, it was no
longer a group of six million who were killed. I now
saw the Holocaust as the murder of six million individual people.
A couple of days later, we flew to Israel and within
24 hours, we visited the Kotel. This was when I knew
this trip would be something far more special than I
Davening Shaharit at Masada
had ever imagined. I have been fortunate enough to
have visited Israel frequently with my family and have
been to the Kotel many times. My bar mitzvah, for
example, was at the holy wall.
But this time was different. I was hesitant as I approached the Kotel, scared as infinite thoughts flooded
my mind. Every image I had seen in Poland rushed
through my head like a movie. I could see all the
shoes and pictures of young children confidently and
unknowingly leading their little siblings to what was
eventually their deaths.
And then I walked up to the Kotel and touched
it. I thought about how fortunate I was to be on such
an amazing program and how amazing my life is. I
thought about how I was not only here for myself but
also for every person that had perished in Europe in the
war. I then realized I was crying, but a kind of crying
I had never experienced before. I did not feel the tears
Spring 2007 12
Michael Levin z”l hit particularly hard in the Seminar community. Many knew him, as he was a former
USYer and Ramahnik. My tour guide had served as a
counselor, a boss, and even a host to Michael when he
first made aliyah to Israel.
Even as my eyes were opened to the horrors of
daily life in Israel, my connection to the land continued to grow. Through the destruction, I watched as the
Israeli spirit stayed alive. Even with the war, I was still
able to see the entire country and feel safe doing so.
I really wish I could have seen Israel in peace. I
know I still would have been impressed with Israeli
dedication through seeing her incredible army and
learning all about Israel’s history. But what I have
gained from experiencing Israel during conflict has
greatly increased my love for the country. I left for Israel hoping to grow some sort of connection to what the
Jewish people calls the Promised Land, and I returned
calling it a home and the most beautiful place I have
ever seen.
– Rachel Becker, Camp Ramah in New England
At Banyas, at the foot of Mount Hermon in the Golan
leaving my eyes, I only felt them once they ran down
my cheeks. I did not know if I was crying out of sadness
or happiness. I just knew I belonged right there right
then for so many reasons.
– Alexander Beren Jefferson, Ramah California
Viewing the past, building for the future
Last summer, I stood at the gravesite of David Ben Gurion and learned a little about his life and work. What
I remember most is one of Ben Gurion’s quotes that
our tour guide told us about that struck me as very
meaningful. He told us that Ben Gurion’s goal for Israel
was “to build a country whose future is worthy of its
past.”
This summer, my group traveled all over Israel
— north, south, east, and west — and we learned and
experienced all kinds of things about Israel’s history
and modern culture. We saw the sunrise and davened
Shaharit at Masada and rafted down the Jordan River. We visited the Ayalon kibbutz, which was built in
1945, along with a secret, underground factory that
the kibbutznikim used to produce up to 40,000 bullets a
day for the Haganah, right under the noses — and feet
— of the British. We had Kabbalat Shabbat overlooking
the Kotel and read Eicha on Tisha B’Av overlooking the
walls of the Old City. We swam in all four of Israel’s
seas: the Red, the Dead, the Med, and the Kinneret.
One of the coolest things we did was ride bikes
through a place called Timna, an ancient copper mine
in the Negev. When the Jews left Egypt, they gathered
Egyptians’ valuables, including things made of the copper from Timna. Later, that same copper was melted
down and used to build the Mishkan. I was there! I
stood at one of the sources of copper used to build the
Mishkan. To me, that’s pretty incredible.
Looking back on all I did this summer, Ben Gurion’s quote means more to me now than it did when I
was standing by his grave with my friends in the sweltering heat of the Negev. This summer I learned so
much about Israel’s past and present, and now, more
than ever, I, and every one of us, must be dedicated to
Israel’s future.
– Lily Feinberg, Ramah Darom
Experiencing Israel in times of war
Being in Israel during a time of war helped me to feel
more passion and love for the country than I could have
felt at any other time. As difficult as it was, I witnessed
reservists being reactivated and leaving their jobs on
Seminar to go fight. I witnessed other staff members
terrified for friends and family in the north, and I even
had to hear of staff members losing friends who were
fighting or just trying to live their lives. The loss of
TRY and USY High
This spring, there are a record high number of
participants in TRY and USY High. Forty-six
of the 69 students on TRY and USY High are
Ramah veterans. They are enjoying a semester
of inspiration. Many will return to Ramah this
summer and share their experiences with staff
and campers.
Visiting the site of the ancient biblical city of Gezer
Enjoying a camel ride and visit to a Bedouin tent in
the Negev
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KO L O T R A M A H
New perspectives and warm community in the summertime
Feeling connections at Ramah Nyack
S A R A H LO PAT I N
A
s clichéd as it sounds, the past four summers have
been the best of my life. I followed a pretty traditional USYer track — Wheels, Pilgrimage and two
summers working at Camp Ramah in Nyack. Each
summer was a totally different experience for me. USY
on Wheels was my first real USY program, Pilgrimage
was my first group Israel trip, and my first summer at
Nyack taught me a work ethic and responsibility. This
summer taught me something more: I learned about
the intensity and importance of community.
Ramah Nyack, like most Ramah camps, places
incredible importance on bringing an amazing mishlachat, Israeli staff, to camp each summer. This summer, there was an especially remarkable group of Israeli
staff. While an incredible mishlachat is always an enormous benefit to camp, this summer it had a particularly
large significance. As the situation in Israel changed,
the presence of the mishlachat impacted the atmosphere
and greatly improved the way American staff members
understood the problems in Israel.
The day that the problems in Lebanon began happened to coincide with our Zimriyah, when the campers perform songs about peace for parents, grandparents, siblings, etc. It is a huge celebration that everyone
looks forward to every summer. Because the tensions in
Lebanon started, there were some questions over how
to deal with Zimriyah, primarily, was it right to have a
celebration the day a war began? In the end, we continued with Zimriyah because we were singing songs of
peace and trying to send a message that we were standing strong in support of Israel. It was a beautiful night.
After all the campers were picked up, the staff
stayed behind to clean up. As we tried to gather to-
gether for a staff picture, spontaneously, we formed a
giant circle, hundreds of staff huddled together. Someone began singing Acheinu, and slowly but surely, hundreds of staff were singing together. We felt the most
unbelievable sense of community and interconnectedness.
The community I joined this summer truly changed
my understanding of togetherness. This is the beauty
of summer: the opportunity to branch out, reach new
people and change your perception of a community.
Sarah Lopatin, a counselor at Ramah Nyack last summer, was the 2006 USY Religion/Education Vice President.
This article was originally published in the Fall 2006 issue of
the USY news magazine, Achshav!
“Siddur Wars”
An innovative educational program at Ramah Palmer
J E R E M Y R U B E RG
A
t Camp Ramah in New England, siddurim
are a very common sight. They seem to appear
all over the place. It is almost guaranteed that if one
were to walk into a moadon, tzrif, binyan (building),
perhaps even the hadar ochel, one would find at least
one siddur lying around. This is because Ramah is a
living Jewish environment, an environment in which
prayer takes place in a variety of settings and not just
“in synagogue.” While it is true that almost everyone
at Ramah can identify what a siddur looks like, familiar with its exterior, sadly, not all become familiar
with its interior, the words, and the tefillot. We learn in
Pirkei Avot, “Al tistakel b’kankan, ela b’ma sheyesh bo,”
“Don’t look at the jar, but rather what is contained in
it.” Therefore, in true Ramah fashion, the hanhallah
of Tzad Bet at Ramah New England decided to create
a peulah for all of Tzad Bet with the goal of familiarizing hanichim with the contents of the siddur. We called
it “Milchamot Hasiddurim,” or “Siddur Wars.”
There were two extremely successful aspects to
Siddur Wars: the development and the implementation.
Although planning peulot can at times be stressful, planning Siddur Wars was extremely fun. Since this peulah
was intended for the entire tzad, all the members of
the hanhallah of Tzad Bet worked together. We laughed
Hanichim engage in group building activities at
Ramah Poconos
R A M A H C A N A DA
L OV E S T H E G R E AT
OUTDOORS
the entire time as we created some of the wackiest
questions, scenarios, and activities all using the Siddur
Sim Shalom. We couldn’t help but laugh as we thought
about how funny it would be when a hanich would need
to rap the Ashrei, or perform an interpretative dance
of the prayer for dew. Additionally, we eagerly awaited
what promised to be beautiful original compositions
of Adon Olam as well as original versions of a halleluyah
poem which we hoped would eventually be included
in daily tefillot. Planning Siddur Wars was not only fun;
it was inspiring. However, never in our wildest dreams
did we actually imagine the incredible success that was
Siddur Wars.
When we brought the hanichim together and told
them that they all needed siddurim, we had no idea
that after an hour and a half, almost all the hanichim
would be begging us to keep going. The peulah was a
tremendous success. Although one tzrif technically did
emerge victorious, in the end everyone won because
we all came out knowing more about the siddur and
had fun doing so.
Jeremy Ruberg, a JTS Rabbinical School student, was
Rosh Nivonim and a Shapiro Fellow at Ramah Palmer last
summer.
Ramah Canada’s unique outdoor tripping
program includes extended canoe trips at
some of northern Canada’s most beautiful provincial parks. Teenage campers choose from a
variety of trip opportunities up to six days
long, developing outdoor skills and inspiring a
love for nature and spiritual development.
The entire Nivonim edah gathers at the entrance to “Kfar Nivonim,” the village for Palmer’s oldest hanichim.
Spring 2007 13
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KO L O T R A M A H
There is intense concentration in center field at
Ramah Palmer.
It’s never too late
A mishlachat member celebrates her
bat mitzvah at Ramah Berkshires
Campers at Ramah Darom enjoy lounging at the pool with their bunkmates.
Excerpted from an article by R A H E L M U S L E A H
O
n August 4, 2006, Lital Shaltiel was called up to
the Torah at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires
as a bat mitzvah. No big deal, right? We have plenty
of b’nai mitzvah at camp! But Lital is not a typical bat
mitzvah of 12 or 13. She’s a returning member of our
Israeli mishlachat.
Only a few weeks earlier, Lital decided to start
wearing tallit and tefillin, though last year she thought
it “very strange”—even forbidden—for women to do
so. “This year I decided I’d try new things,” says Lital, 21. “Camp Ramah is the only place I can do that.
When she puts on her tallit, Lital says, she feels as if
she is more committed to the tefillah. “I’m participating—not just taking the siddur and reading. Because I
am more immersed in it I can concentrate better.”
Lital took the next step—being called up for an
aliyah—and then the next—learning to read Torah.
Though she had practiced innumerable times, Lital
says: “My heart was pounding like I had stage fright.
My voice trembled. When I was done, the candy started
flying at me. The entire mishlachat got up and danced,
Siman tov u’mazal tov, and David melech Yisrael, and lifted
me up in a chair. It was one of the best days of my life,”
she adds, her face glowing.
Lital, who lives in Herzliyah and wants to be a tour
guide in Israel, grew up in a secular family, though
her father used to be an assistant hazzan. She worries
that her parents might be offended at her new-found
observance. “I will explain that it makes me feel good.
Getting up in the morning and praying makes my day
go better, purer. When I say Elohai n’tzor l’shoni me-ra
[My God, guard my tongue from evil], I say it aloud so
I really mean it and then try to put it into practice. Saying the bracha, ha-noten la-ya’ef ko’ah [God gives strength
to the weary], gives me energy to continue the day.”
When she returns to Israel, she hopes to attend services at Masorti congregations near her home. “This is
the age when you discover yourself,” she says. “I’m still
in the process of learning.”
Kadur sal (basketball) is a major sport at Ramah California, where campers compete, learn new skills, and
develop increased self-confidence from nurturing coaches.
Spring 2007 14
“schmoozing”
On the important art of
Small conversations have great meaning at Ramah
RABBI DAVID SOLOFF
I
n the Northwoods of Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, nature announces the waning of summer with
subtle changes. An acorn falls from an old oak tree by
the trail. The sun sets a little earlier. Summer flowers
begin to fade.
Campers and staff are holding on to every minute.
There are the big events—the Machon-Nivonim girls’
and guys’ basketball competitions, the all-camp Rekudiah (dance festival), the campwide tennis tournament.
The radio station is broadcasting an impressive final
week of programming from morning through night.
There are many smaller happenings which tie the
summer together. Interspersed with finishing projects,
studying for the lifeguard training exam and playing
basketball, tennis, and swimming, campers and staff do
a lot of schmoozing with each other.
At camp, schmoozing is an art form—the art of
conversation. It takes a lot of skill for university-age
staff to figure out how to engage each of their campers
in conversation. It also takes a lot of skill for campers
to refine their own conversational skills with peers and
with staff.
I asked groups of senior counselors to share their
experiences schmoozing with kids. During the first
weeks some campers had difficulty making eye contact when they spoke with staff. Some boys began the
season only speaking about sports. Some girls started
the season unsure of how to break into conversations
swirling around them between groups of girls who had
been to camp before.
Counselor by counselor, they shared with me conversations from the summer that emerged from living
together with these campers. As the cabin groups grew
closer and the staff and campers learned to enjoy each
other, the conversations flourished.
When do campers and staff schmooze? On the kikar during free time, during the break after lunch (sha’at
menuchah), after lights out in the cabin or on the cabin
porch, on Shabbat walks after the davening, during an
art class, after a tennis lesson, watching an inter-edah
sporting event.
Many counselors described conversations involving Israeli shlichim reflecting about the events in Israel.
Campers and staff still enjoy talking sports and popular
culture but many also described conversations about
being Jewish during the year, challenges at school, ideas
about faith, world politics. Campers have shared favorite poems and short stories. They have shared experiences about their home communities and daily living
in Israel, South America and cities across the Midwest.
Several counselors described how during the first
week there were campers in their cabins who talked at,
not with fellow campers or staff. These campers have
made huge strides in learning to speak with each other.
At the heart of the camp experience at Ramah is this
encounter and engagement with others. As the staff
shared these conversations they each had huge smiles
as they recalled those special “breakthrough” moments
when they connected with campers. They also spoke
with pride about how campers learned the skills to engage each other as friends—especially campers who
began the season distant and apart from each other.
Rabbi David Soloff is the director of Camp Ramah
in Wisconsin.
During 2006, Ramah Wisconsin was once again vibrant with performance and visual arts. The visiting performers included
Neshama Carlebach, Brian Gelfand, Joel Chasnoff, and the Northwoods Ramah Theatre Company. These professionals supplemented and enhanced the work of resident artists Jonathan Adam Ross (performing arts), Paul Palnik (visual
arts), Leehe Matalon (studio arts), David Sherman (photography), Yehezkiel Mizrachi and Marsha Rosenson (music)
and the university-aged staff. Artists met together weekly to study Judaica and share insights about the artistic culture at camp.
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KO L O T R A M A H
Siblings of fallen Israeli soldiers come to Ramah
Friends of the IDF (FIDF) sponsors Israeli children’s stay at Ramah California
J U L I E G RU E N B AU M FA X Excerpts reprinted with permission from the LA Jewish Journal
E
ster was hoarding her snacks. Each day after canteen
at Camp Ramah in California, Ester, a 12-yearold Ethiopian Israeli, would take her potato chips and
chocolate bars and squirrel them away in her suitcase
back in her bunk. She was saving the free treats for her
seven younger brothers at home, because she was worried that they weren’t being cared for. Since her older
brother was killed two years ago while serving in the
Israeli army, her parents haven’t been the same.
Living with the trauma and sorrow of losing a
brother or sister in the Israel Defense Forces has scarred
all of the thirty 12-13 year olds who spent ten days at
Camp Ramah in Ojai earlier this month. The Legacy/Moreshet Program, sponsored by Friends of
the IDF (FIDF), gave kids who lost a sibling or parent in combat a bar or bat mitzvah present that allowed
for $18,000. The Men’s Club of the Jewish Federation of Palm Springs donated more than $60,000,
and promised more if FIDF needed it. Ramah camper
Ethan Wolens sponsored a child as his bar mitzvah
project. “I have a blast here at camp, and it’s like a home
away from home for me. I wanted the Israelis to have
camp as a home away from home also,” Ethan said.
“When we got here, the Americans were so welcoming and so warm. They really embraced us and it
made it so much easier to become a part of things,” said
Miri, whose brother was killed last year.
On the day the group arrived, Ramah’s Israeli
staffers welcomed them with songs and signs, and the
entire camp stood to sing “Hatikvah” after their first
lunch. The Israelis joined up with a unit their age to
swim, sing, and play and even to go to daily prayer—a
Ramah Day Camp in Chicago exploded with excitement during Yom Sport. The whole camp was separated
into a rainbow of colors. Each color participated in five
exciting sports: swimming, basketball, newcomb, kickball,
and dodgeball. Teams won extra points for creating and
singing team songs and cheers, and for waving their banners proudly. Campers displayed excellent sportsmanship
and radiated spirit throughout the day.
A summer of leadership
Gesher campers at Ramah Poconos
reflect on their last summer
before Seminar
A
aron Wolff and Shira Friedman (see photo below)
were Gesher campers (entering 11th grade) at Camp
Ramah in the Poconos last summer. Below, they reflect
on what it meant to be leaders as members of the oldest edah
in camp.
We, as an edah, are next in line to take on the responsibility of leadership. Ramah is a place where we
Gesher campers have learned many leadership skills. In
this coming year, many of us will be in Israel on Ramah
Seminar. Israel is described as a land flowing with milk
and honey. Ramah is a place flowing with goodness, spirit, and friendship. Gesherniks would not be able to go on
and become great leaders wherever we go without the
guidance of our past and present tzevet here at Ramah. Israeli campers sponsored by FIDF are greeted warmly at Ramah California upon arrival.
them to have an American-style summer blast — if not
to forget, then at least to enjoy a respite from the sadness that follows them at home.
But despite the fact that Ester and her friends were
having a great time, one morning Ester cried to her
counselor that she needed to go home to take care of
her family. “I told her, ‘your family wants you to be
here. You are entitled to enjoy life,’” said Rachel Binyamin, the overseas coordinator for FIDF in Israel,
who accompanied the kids on the journey. Binyamin
packed up a box of goodies for Ester to take home to
her brothers, and told her, “This is for your brothers.
What you get, you eat — it’s for you to enjoy.”
For most of the trip, enjoyment wasn’t hard to
come by. The kids raved about the packed days at Ramah and special trips to Universal Studios, the California Science Center and the Santa Monica Pier. Those
trips, along with spruced-up gift bags, got added into
the program after sponsorships kept pouring in even
after the $3,600 per child price tag had been raised.
Marci Spitzer, chair of the Southern California
region of FIDF and a staff member at Ramah, said
there is enough money left over to seed a program for
next year or to contribute in other ways to FIDF’s widows and orphans programs. One donor wrote a check
Kochavim campers (entering 4th grade) excitedly begin
their Ramah Berkshires experience.
— Aaron Wolff
first for about two-thirds of the Israeli group.
The Israelis didn’t talk with the Americans about
why they’re here — about the huge holes torn into their
lives. Instead, they talked about regular teen stuff. “I
don’t want to bring it up, because I don’t want to make
them sad,” said Hanna Port, an American camper
who practiced her Hebrew and became good friends
with the Israelis. “They’re sad enough that they have
to leave soon, and we’ve become such good friends.”
But among themselves, the Israeli kids — who met
each other through this trip — have talked about their
losses, and, along with counselors trained to deal with
their trauma, the kids offer each other an important
network of support.
Seeing this group at camp gave a renewed sense of
mission to the 25 Israeli shlichim, also mostly army-aged,
who spend their summer bringing a little bit of Israel to
Ramah California—a difficult task as Katyushas fell at
home. “They are struggling with being here and representing their country, knowing what their brothers and
sisters are doing back in Israel,” said Zachary Lasker,
assistant director at Ramah California. “For them to
feel they are again connected, and that they have their
eyes on these kids, has been very powerful.”
Kfirim campers (entering 7th grade) at Canada Ramah
prepare to learn new boating skills.
As Adat Ha’Gesher, we are the leaders of camp. Although
we have had to work hard in order to become leaders, it
is both a privilege and a responsibility. We have carried
with us the wonderful leadership lessons that we have
learned from our counselors, JCs and CITs.
As we planned Yom Sport, performed a great play,
interacted with our CIT kids, led zmirot in the hadar
ochel, or just helped out around camp, we acted as true
leaders and role models. There are also many other
leaders. As campers of Ramah we all feel a strong connection to Israel. Summer after summer we have a large
mishlachat and many people go on to Seminar after their
Gesher summer.
Many of us hope to come back to camp as counselors. It is a place to create lasting memories and learn
traditions which we then bring home with us as a piece
of Ramah. As future counselors, we hope to use our leadership abilities in order to impact others in the same way
that camp has positively impacted us.
— Shira Friedman
Spring 2007 15
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KO L O T R A M A H
Digging the past
Philadelphia day campers make archeological finds at “Tel Ramah”
“T
el Ramah” replicated an Israeli excavation site
at the Philadelphia Ramah Day Camp.
Campers of all ages learned about Israel’s ancient past
by excavating a simulated dig site under the guidance
of archeologist Aaron Greener.
Digging in an outdoor, life-size tel (archaeological
mound), participants found artifacts and learned about
their uses in the period of the Second Temple. Through
various learning stations including ‘excavation and sifting,’ an archaeology lab (pottery restoration), and a
daily life station, participants gained a better understanding of life in ancient times. They used real archaeological tools, and learned professional excavation
techniques.
Tel Ramah opened on Tisha B’Av. Participants in
the dig developed a sense of the value of recovering
the sources of Jewish history, something especially significant around Tisha B’Av. It is important to see that
while destruction exists in Jewish history, the Jewish
people have persevered throughout time.
Visit www.digthepast.org for additional information
about Aaron Greener’s “Dig the Past” Israeli Archeological
Experience, visit Funding for the Philadelphia Day Camp’s
Tel Ramah project was partially provided by the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, Israel Engagement Grants.
Machon campers (entering 10th grade) at Camp Ramah
in the Berkshires had a unique specialty experience,
“chavaya,” taught by talented visiting professionals. The
“Adventures in Waterskiing” chavaya took place with the
help of Ramah Canada waterski staff alumni.
Bogrim campers (entering 8th grade) at Camp Ramah
in the Poconos work with Jonathan Magen, radio
specialist, to prepare the radio broadcast for the day.
A special moment in time
The importance of Erev Shabbat at Ramah Nyack
Ramah Celebrates
60 Years of Camping
S TAC E Y C O H E N
I
t’s not one story I have to share, but an entire adolescence, a series of events that have guided me in
maturing into the young woman I am today. Camp
Ramah in Nyack has given me love and nourishment
for five years and it will continue to be a part of me for
the rest of my life.
When I think of camp, my mind instantly races to
any given Friday. It is a hectic workday for everyone.
For swim staff, the day begins early, classes are jumbled
with free swims, and you only get five minutes to eat
lunch, which you have to eat in the pool house instead
of at the hadar ochel. While the rest of camp is at the
Friday afternoon oneg, swim staff is in a meeting, assessing the past week, making preparations for the one to
come, and admittedly goofing off in the water before
the pool reopens for after-camp swimming. As the end
of the camp day approaches, the lifeguards collectively
cross the gesher to join the rest of the hanichim and tzevet
to dance our hearts out.
As per tradition, Friday afternoon dancing always
finishes with Mikey Edelstein lowering the flag,
everyone singing Hatikvah, and of course, dancing to
Amen. When dancing to this song we open up our
R A M A H :
Spring 2007 16
6 0
minds and hearts, physically open our arms, and welcome Shabbat.
The hours between hanichim leaving campgrounds
and lighting candles are always filled with delightful
fast-paced activity: visiting the local old age home, decorating the hadar ochel, handing out Shabbat-o-grams,
racing to shower while there is still hot water. I know
I personally fill time by waiting on the migrash with a
friend for the hustle and bustle to clear as we lie on our
backs in the shade and enjoy each other’s company.
At 6:15 p.m. every Friday while Camp Ramah
in Nyack is in session, a miracle happens. Everyone in
camp is in the same place, at the same time. Everyone has showered. We are all dressed in our summer’s
finest, and with that well-known approving smile of
director Amy Skopp Cooper, the community opens
their siddurim and begins to chant Yedid Nefesh.
This may sound like an exaggeration, but it is very
possible that this is the moment I live for. It’s not just a
moment I look forward to at the end of each summer
week, it is an experience I cling to during the year as
well, when the reality of life pulls apart our community and we spend our Friday nights singing Yedid Nefesh in separate places, with different communities. No
matter where I might physically be on any given Shabbat, my heart is in the Beit Knesset of Camp Ramah in
Nyack.
Camp is my home. I have spent some of the most
influential years of my life there and made the longestlasting friendships I will probably ever come to know.
Ramah has not just been a change in my life, it has
been a catalyst in forming it.
Stacey Cohen was co-Rosh Mayim last summer at Camp
Ramah in Nyack.
60
Y E A R S
O F
C A M P I N G
October 14, 2007
Visit www.campramah.org
for more information and to register.
The tefillah experience at Ramah is peer-led and inspiring.
Pictured here is Torah-reading during a weekday service
at Ramah California.
Ramah Wisconsin campers prepare for their three-onthree basketball game as part of their special campwide
“Gus Ramah” tournament.
E X C E L L E N C E